Global agriculture firm, H.J. Baker said its Tiger-Sul Products Co. subsidiary opened a new sulphur production facility in Irricana, Alberta, Canada.

Since the acquisition in early 2013, H.J. Baker has upgraded the plant to bring it online as a top tier sulphur bentonite fertilizer production facility, including a new 250 metric ton molten sulphur storage tank and improved water treatment facility.

The Irricana facility is located 46 miles north of the Calgary plant. Originally constructed in 1998, it was design for sulphur processing. The location includes 20 acres of developed area and 31 acres of undeveloped land that will be used for test plots and R&D. The main manufacturing facility has 18,000 square feet of processing area with 18,000 square feet of storage area. The site includes a 7,400 square foot administration and operations building, which will also house Tiger-Sul University classrooms and R&D lab space.

Christopher Smith, CEO/President of H.J. Baker stated: “We are very happy to announce our Irricana facility is up and running. We have seen increased demand for our sulphur bentonite fertilizer products and anticipate that continuing. Our new facility will allow us to meet that demand and grow. The new location will be a top tier manufacturing facility and have improved transportation logistics. It will also be where we showcase the innovative work H.J. Baker’s Tiger-Sul Products is doing. We will have an enhanced Research & Development facility and test-plots on site where we can see first-hand how our products help improve crop health and increase yield.”

Donald Messick, Vice President of Communications, Marketing and Agriculture for The Sulphur Institute added, “Crop sulphur deficiencies continue to grow globally as well as in North America. Globally, TSI estimates that there is more than a 10 million ton annual deficit for sulphur fertilizers. This number will only grow without deliberate sulphur fertilizer applications on deficient soils.”

The Irricana opening follows H.J. Baker’s recent announcement of a new molten sulphur unloading system at their Tiger-Sul Products facility in Atmore, Alabama, which will increase capacity and logistics on their dedicated rail spur.